How the Desire to Return Home Turns into a Prison Sentence
For the past three years, there have been reports of Belarusians who left the regime and then returned home, only to face repression. Many, while abroad, might have thought that this could never happen to them, that the authorities had forgotten, or that too much time had passed. But that is far from the truth.
On July 23, Nasha Niva published an article about Natalia Levaya, who returned to Belarus after a long time. According to the article, on July 17, she was sentenced to 6 years in a penal colony and fined 40,000 rubles.
Natalia, 38 years old, is a professional 2D artist who lived in Poland and was very eager to return to Belarus. Despite her colleagues advising her against returning, her desire to go back to her homeland was stronger. She even paid donations for 2020 in excess, for which she received a certificate from the KGB. With this certificate, she headed back to Belarus.
However, the Homeland Did Not Greet Her with Open Arms
Natalia was detained at the border. On July 17, the Brest City Court charged her with three offenses: "Funding of War," "Funding of Extremist Organizations," and "Funding of Extremist Activities." Six years in a penal colony is the price she paid for her desire to return to her homeland, believing that the KGB would not bother her due to the so-called compensation.
Why do we highlight this story? It is a clear example of the regime's lies, its repressive policies, and its hatred towards its own citizens.
Earlier this year, human rights activists reported over 200 Belarusians who were detained upon returning to their homeland. Many of them appealed to the "return commission," but this did not save them. Among them was Tatyana Kurilina, who was accused of administering protest chats and sentenced to four and a half years in a penal colony. Brest resident Igor Nemirovich also appealed to the commission and returned to Belarus, receiving a one-year prison sentence. There are hundreds of such examples.
Do Not Trust the Safety of Returning Home
For example, Lukashenko established his own commission for the return of citizens. But what do we see in practice? People who trusted these promises return home and find themselves behind bars. This commission has become yet another tool for luring opposition-minded citizens and then persecuting them.
Another of his initiatives is the scheme for donations. And once again, the result is the same: people pay huge sums, hoping for protection, but instead face arrests and prison sentences. These donations turned out to be another way to extract money from citizens under false pretenses.
Finally, the recently introduced visa-free regime for European citizens also turned out to be a trap. Behind the attractive promises of freedom of movement lies the reality: the regime detained a German citizen and sentenced him to death. This means that even for foreigners, Belarus remains an extremely unsafe place.
All this confirms that returning to a country ruled by Lukashenko's regime is highly risky and dangerous for Belarusians. No "commissions," "compensations," or "repentances" guarantee safety. This is something that everyone currently safe abroad and considering returning home needs to be reminded of.
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